Sail club gets second wind

MEMBERS of a sail training group who thought their venture had run onto the rocks have been offered a lifeline by the Land and Property Management Authority.

The Urunga Sail Training Club was crushed to receive a letter from the LPMA recently ordering them to vacate the old Sea Scout Hall in Urunga’s River Street.

Club members had tidied up the disused hall and renamed it Scouts NSW North Coast Region Four Rivers Aquatic Centre.

USTC treasurer Bob Coleman said they had sought and were granted $30,000 to improve the disabled facilities at the club-house and on the launching ramp, subject to approval of the property owner.

Club members wanted to know what better use of the hall LPMA had in mind other than to have it open for use by the community and maintained and improved by the efforts of members and friends, all volunteers, from the Urunga Sail Training Club, Sailability NSW, Scouts NSW and the community at large.

A spokesman for the Land and Property Management Authority said the former reserve trust manager, Urunga Scouts, had sub-let the premises to the sail training club without authority.

“USTC was advised that it could be legally liable for adverse outcomes that occurred while it occupied the premises without authority,” the spokesman said.

“The club was advised to vacate the premises until the matter could be sorted out.

“Now that Urunga Scouts is no longer trust manager, LPMA is willing to meet USTC to discuss their needs.”

The Urunga Sail Training Club is a small but committed group of local sailors who promote sailing on the Bellinger and Kalang Rivers. The club is now a registered Yachting Australia Training Centre, two of its committee members have become accredited small dinghy sailing instructors and people from six to 60 have completed sailing courses conducted by the club.